Nógrád an administrative county (comitatus or megye), in present Hungary, and also in the former Kingdom of Hungary.

Nógrád county

Nógrád county lies in northern Hungary. It shares borders with Slovakia and the Hungarian counties Pest, Heves and Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén. The capital of Nógrád county is Salgótarján. Its area is 2544 km².

Nógrád (former county)

Nógrád (-Hungarian, in Latin: comitatus Neogradiensis, in German: Neuburg or Neograd, in Slovak: Novohrad) is also the name of a historic administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is presently in southern Slovakia and in northern present-day Hungary. The name Novohrad is still used in Slovakia as an informal designation of the corresponding territory. The name stems from the former Nógrád (Novohrad) castle in present-day Hungary.

Geography

Nógrád county shared borders with the counties Hont, Zólyom, Gömör-Kishont, Heves and Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun. It was situated approximately along the line Poltár , Lučenec, Szécsény and Vác . The river Ipeľ flowed through the county. Its area was 4133 km² around 1910.

Capitals

The capital of the county was Balassagyarmat, except for the 18th century, when the capital was Lučenec.

History

In 1918 (confirmed by the Treaty of Trianon 1920), the part of the county north of the river Ipeľ became part of newly formed Czechoslovakia, and the southern part stayed in Hungary.

The Czechoslovakian part of the county was part of the Slovak Land (Slovenská krajina/zem). During World War II, when Czechoslovakia was split temporarily, the southern half was occupied by Hungary under the First Vienna Award. In 1993, Czechoslovakia was split and in 1996 Nógrád/Novohrad became part of the newly created Banska Bystrica region of Slovakia.

The Hungarian part of Nógrád merged with the Hungarian part of Hont county to form Nógrád-Hont county. Between 1939 and 1945 it was united with the occupied half of the Slovak part of Nógrád county. Since 1950 the Hungarian part of Nógrád, with a small part of former Hont county added, forms the present Hungarian county Nógrád.

Districts

In the early 20th century, the districts and their capitals were:

• Balassagyarmat
• Nógrád, capital Rétság
• Szirák
• Szécsény
• Fülek/Fiľakovo, capital Salgótarján
• Lučenec (Hungarian: Losonc)
• Halič (Hungarian: Gács)

Urban district:

• Lučenec (Hungarian: Losonc)

The towns Fiľakovo, Lučenec and Halič are presently in Slovakia.